Hay gatherer and stacker.



PATENTED MAY 5, 1908. E. M. .ORTON.

HAY GATHERER AND STAGKER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 12, 1906.

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w/r/z/ ssfs WM No. 886,725. PATENTED MAY 5, 1908. E. M. ORTON.

HAY GATHERER AND STACKBR. APPLICATION FILED 1113.12, 1906.

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No. 886,725. PATENTED MAY 5, 1908.

B. M. ORTON.

HAY GATH-ERER AND STAGKER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 12, I906.

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QM I I 15E NORRIS PETERS c0, wnsumcrou, b. 1.:

EDWARD M. ORTON, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

HAY GATHERER AND STACKER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 5, 1908.

Application filed February 12, 1906. Serial No. 300,757.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD M. ORTON, of Minneapolis, Hennepin county,Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in HayGatherers and Stackers, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to simplify and improve the constructionof the machine shown and described in Letters Patent of the UnitedStatesNo. 7 86,513, issued to me April 4, 1905.

A further object is to provide a machine for gathering and stacking hay,wherein the load will be centrally supported on the carrying wheels,thereby greatly facilitating the handling of the loaded fork orgatherer.

A further object is to provide means for raising the loaded forkpreparatory to moving the same to the stack.

A further object is to dispense with all springs usually used inmachines of this kind.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following detaileddescription.

The invention consists, generally, in various constructions andcombinations, all as hereinafter described and particularly pointed outin the claims.

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, Figure1 is a side elevation of a hay gatherer and stacker embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the rear portion of themachine. Fig. 3 is a'plan view of the machine. Fig. 4 is a detail viewpartially in section of one side of the machine showing the manner ofmounting the tilting gatherer or fork thereon. Fig. 5 is a rear view ofone end of the machine, and Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional View of theforward portion of the machine showing the gathering fork tilted to itsworking position, the raised or dumping position of the fork beingindicated by dotted lines.

In the drawing, 2 represents an axle, preferably of tubing, extendingtransversely of the machine and connected at its central por tion by asuitable coupling 3 with the forward end of a draft pole 4 having theusual draft connection 4. A steering wheel 5 is provided beneath therear end of the draft pole, and has a vertical steering post 6projecting above a platform 7 and operated by means of a lever 8 insubstantially the same manner as described in my patent above referredto. A seat 9 is mounted on the platform near the steering lever and theother operating mechanism to be hereinafterdescribed.

At each end of the axle 2 I provide a pair of forwardly extending arms10 composed preferably of tubing, each arm of a pair being suitablyspaced from the other arm of the same pair and having the carryingwheels 11 of the machine j ournaled between their forward ends, allsubstantially as described in my former patent.

12 represents upright standards having forked lower ends which straddlethe carrying wheels, and are pivoted on the axes of said wheels andadapted to swing forwardly to allow the fork to gather up the hay and tooverhang the stack and facilitate the discharge ofthe load thereon.

As indicated in the drawing, I prefer to mount the lower end of eachstandard on the inner end of the wheel axis and extend a brace 13 fromthe middle portion of the standard to the outer end of the wheel axis.This construction may, however, be modified if preferred. Any suitableaxis may be provided for each carrying wheel, but I prefer to employ abolt 14 passing through the lower ends of the standards and braces andthe horizontal arms 10 and the wheel hubs. A ivotal support is thusprovided for the uprig t standards and one which also serves as ajournal for the Wheels. The arms 10 are preferably provided with aseries of holes 15 to permit the adjustment of the upright standards andbraces forward or back of the axes of the wheels. Ordinarily, however, Iprefer to mount them on the same pivots, as indicated in the drawings.The upright standards being centrally supported over the wheels willcause the load when the fork is raised to be evenly distributed thereonand supported directly upon the wheel axles or pivots, thus preventingundue tilting of the machine forward or backward, and facilitating itsmovement across the field when loaded.

To tilt the upright standards, I provide brackets 16 mounted on the axle2 and having a rock shaft 17 journaled therein. The ends of said shaftare provided with arms 18 having a series of holes 19 in which the lowerends of bars 20, also having holes 21, are adjustably secured. The upperends of the bars are attached to the u per portions of the uprightstandards. arm 22 is mounted on the rock shaft 17 and connected by a rod23 with an operating lever 24 mounted on the draft pole near thesteering mechanism above described. By means of this lever, which hasthe usual locking latch device, the operator can rock the shaft 17 andswing the upright standards forward or backward as desired, theadjustable connections of the bars '20 with the said standardspermitting the degree of movement to be regulated at will. The upperends of the standards are connected by a suitable cross bar 25, andtheir vertical edges are provided with angle bars 26 which formguideWays for antifriction wheels 27 mounted in pairs on traveler plates28, which are adapted to slide vertically on the inner faces of saidstandards while the wheels 27 roll on the angle bar guideways. Below thetraveler plates 28 is a second pair of similar plates 29, also havingguide wheels adapted to travel on the bars 26, and connected with theplates 28 by straps 30. There are, therefore, on each side of themachine a pair of plates slidable on the upright standards and connectedto move simultaneously. A fork or gatherer 31 has a pivotal support 32in the lower lates 29 on each side of the machine, said for having theusual teeth or tines 33 and being mounted so that substantially an equalportion of its weight is in front and in the rear of its pivots tofacilitate the tilting of the same and to more evenly distribute theload on the carry- I ing wheels. An upright rack 34 is provided at therear end of the fork to hold the hay in place thereon, and a rock shaft35 is mounted on the said fork and has a toggle joint con nection ateach end with the upper traveler plates 28, said connections consistingpreferably of arms 36 provided on the ends of the rock shaft 35, andhaving perforations 37 and adjustably connected with perforated links 38pivoted on the plates 28. These links and arms are adapted to be swunginto line with one another on a dead center, as indicated in Fig. 6, forthe purpose of locking the fork and preventing it from tilting in eitherdirection. Whenever desired the rock shaft 35 may be oscillated to breakthe toggle joint connection and swing the arms 36 out of line with thelinks 38, as indicated in Fig. 1, and

- lower the points of the fork teeth to a working position. Theadjustable connections between the rock shaft and the vertical movingplates 28 allow the operator to regulate the degree of tilt of the forkaccording to the character of the ground where the machine is beingused.

To operate the rock shaft 35 I provide an arm 39 thereon having aflexible connection 40 which extends back to the steering platform andis attached to a drum 41 on the shaft on which a weight 42 is suspendedfor the purpose of taking up the slack in the cable 40. Wheneverdesired, the operator will grasp the cable and oscillate the shaft 35and move the connections between said shaft and the plates 28 to theposition shown in Fig. 1, thereby raising the forward end of the fork.

For the purpose of raising the fork to its dumping position on thestandards, I mount sheave wheels 43 between the plates 28 and the straps30 on each side of the machine.

At the top of the upright standards I arrange wheels 44, and similarwheels 45 beneath the lower ends of the standards on each side of themachine, and intermediate wheels 46 near the forward end of the draftpole. Wheels 47 are also mounted beneath the steering platform on eachside of the draft pole. A cable or rope 47 is provided at its middleportion with. a grappling hook 48, and the ends of the said cable arecarried around or over the said wheels described and secured to the topof the upright standards. When, therefore, power is applied to the cablethe fork will be raised on the standards. The grappling hook willnormally be carried by the machine and upon approachinga stack, orwherever it is desired to discharge the load of the fork, the operatorwill throw off the hook and allow it to dig into the ground or engagesome obstruction while the machine will be moved on toward the stack,and at the pro er time the cable will become taut and wil elevate thefork sufficiently to allow its load to be de osited on the stack in themanner described in my former application.

For convenience I prefer to provide a suitable handle 49, by means ofwhich the operator, without leaving his seat, can cast off the grapplinghook to dig into the ground or engage a rope 50 stretched between pegs51. It is sometimes desirable, particularly on rough ground, to raisethe loaded fork slightly preparatory to the trip across the field to thestack. I therefore mount a drum 52 on the steering platform operated bya hand wheel 53 and having a cable 54 pro vided at one end with a hook55 and passing over a ulley 56. A knot 57 is provided in the cab e 47and when the hook 55 is in engagement therewith the operator may revolvethe drum 52 and raise the fork a sufiicient distance to clear theground, a suitable ratchet mechanism 58 being provided in connectionwith the drum 52 to prevent backward movement. The hook 55 will notinterfere with the normal operation of raising the fork to the top ofthe standards, as the cable will slip readily therethrough.

In 0 eration, the machine is moved across the fie d lengthwise of thewindrows and the hay gathered up on the fork until the desired load isobtained, when if some distance from the stack the fork will be raisedslightly and the machine drawn to a point near the stack, where the forkis raised to the top of the standards and the load discharged. Myimproved means for mounting the fork and standards on the frame willinsure an equal distribution of the load, and prevent sagging or tiltingwhen the machine is loaded. 1

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels, of standardshaving forked lower ends to straddle said wheels whereby the load willbe centered thereon, and a gathering fork carried by said standards.

2. The combination with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards having forked lower ends to straddle said wheels and pivotallysupported on said frame, a gathering fork supported between said wheelsand standards, said fork being vertically movable on said standards, andmeans for tilting said standards and operating said fork, substantiallyas described.

3; The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards ivoted on said frame, the lower ends of said standards beingadjustable forwardly or rearwardly with respect to said carrying wheelsand a vertically movable gathering fork carried by said standards.

The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards sup ported thereon, and a pivotally supported gathering fork,a rock shaft mounted on said fork and having forward extensions, linkshaving a sliding connection with said standards at one end and attachedto said extensions at the other end and adapted to be alined with saidextensions to depress the forward end of said fork or swung out ofalinement udth said extensions to tilt said fork and means foroscillating said rock shaft.

5. The combination with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards sup ported thereon, traveler plates having antifrictionbearing wheels on said standards, a gathering fork pivotally supportedby said traveler plates between said standards, a rock shaft mounted onsaid fork and having forwardly turned ends, links adj ustably connectingsaid forwardly turned ends with said traveler plates and adapted to bealined with said ends to depress the rearward end of said fork or swungout of alinement with said ends to tilt said fork, and means foroscillating said shaft.

6. The combination with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards pivotally supported at their lower ends on said frame, a rockshaft mounted on said frame and having backwardly turned ends, barsadjustably connecting said ends with the upper portion of saidstandards, means for rocking said shaft, and a gathering fork su portedbetween said standards and vertically movable thereon, substantially asdescribed.

7. The combination with a frame having carrying wheels and a rearwardlyextending push pole, of upright standards mounted on the forward portionof said frame, a gathering fork sus ended between said standards andvertical y movable thereon, a rope provided with a grappling hook andarranged to pass over pulleys mounted on said frame and on saidstandards and attached to said fork for raising the same when saidgrappling hook engages a suitable stop near the point of discharging theload, and means for placing said rope under tension and raising saidfork a predetermined distance from the ground preparatory to moving theload across the field, substantially as descrlbed.

8. The combination with a frame having carrying wheels, of standardshaving lower ends to straddle said wheels and pivotally supported onsaid frame, the pivots of said standards being coincident with the axesof said wheels, a gathering fork suspended between said wheels andstandards, said fork being suitably balanced on its pivots and having avertical movement between said standards, and means for raising saidfork and tilting the same, substantially as described.

9. The combination with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards mounted thereon, a gathering fork pivotally sup ported betweensaid standards and wheels,

travelers vertically slidable on said standards and whereon said fork ispivoted, a rock shaft mounted on said fork, means adjustably connectingsaid rock shaft with said travelers and whereby the tilting movement ofsaid fork is controlled, and means for rocking said shaft, substantiallyas described.

10. The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards mounted thereon, a gathering fork pivotally su ported betweensaid standards and vertically movable thereon, a rock shaft havingforward extensions and links having a sliding attachment with saidstandards at one end and adjustably connected at the other end to saidextensions, and means for oscillating said shaft.

11. The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards pivotally supported on said frame, a rock shaft havingbackwardly turned extensions, bars adjustably connecting said extensionswith said standards and whereby the tilt or inclination of saidstandards may be regulated, means for rocking said shaft and a gatheringfork supported between said standards and vertically movable thereon.

12. The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels of uprightstandards pivoted on said frame and having their pivots coincident withthe axes of said wheels and the lower ends of said standards beingadjustable horizontally toward the front or rear of the machine, and avertically movable gathering fork carried by said standards.

13. The combination, with a frame having an axle and carrying wheels andforwardly extending arms 10 having a series of holes 15,

of upright standards having pivots to enter said holes 15. and wherebysaid standards are adjustable on said arms, and a vertically movablegathering fork.

14. The co1nbination,'with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards mounted thereon, a gathering fork vertically movable betweensaid standards, a rock shaft, means adjustably connecting said rockshaft with said standards and means for oscillating i said shaft.

15. The combination, with a frame having carrying wheels, of uprightstandards mounted thereon and having forked lower ends to straddle saidwheels, a vertically movable gathering fork carried by said standards, a

said frame over said carrying wheels, whereby the load will be centeredthereon, and a gathering fork suspended between said standards.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 5th day of February1906.

EDWARD M. ORTON.

Witnesses:

' RICHARD PAUL, O. MAGNAMARA.

